How Domain Names Can Help Attract Leads to Your Website

Whether you are a small or large business, your domain name is a representation of your operations. Customers who search for a particular product or service online are often doing so with limited information on hand, which is why your domain can really make the difference between capturing web traffic or losing out to a competitor.

While some businesses are best equipped with the selection of a brandable domain name which will be marketed through word of mouth, others can benefit from keyword focused domains. Keyword domains are those which align with the search terms that prospective customers would use to search for a related product or service within the industry you operate. To demonstrate the impact, there are few stories better than the well-known case involving carloans.com.au.

Shaun McGowan of beep.com.au was initially chasing the lucrative carloans domain. After several unanswered attempts to contact the owner, Mr McGowan accepted that the domain was out of reach. Settling on the beep domain, he was able to develop the company into a brand. Few would argue his company was not initially successful – amassing turnover of $60m. Realising his domain wasn’t quite allowing him to maximise his business, he again targeted the carloans website to fast-track growth through its recognition and trustworthiness.

In itself, the carloans domain doesn’t necessary tick all the boxes of a conventional ‘brand’. There certainly wasn’t, and still isn’t, anything unique about the phrase “car loans”. After all, the similarly named carloan.com.au features as the second highest selling Australian domain name of all time, which could easily be a source of confusion amongst customers.

With the aid of a well-regarded domainer friend, Mr McGowan was able to acquire the domain. Transitioning from a catchy albeit non-descriptive domain to one which focused on common keywords had an immediate impact. The benefits were profound across the board. Not only did web traffic increase exponentially, but the volume of leads and sales generated by the business skyrocketed. From a previous turnover of $60m, the company was soon able to hit the $100m milestone. The business was also able to cut back on marketing expenses and improve its back-end operations, which would further help the bottom line.

While of course this story serves as an example from one end of the scale, the reality is, appropriate domain names can help you generate leads. Whether that is through a generic or descriptive keyword, as was the case here, or via a more traditional ‘brandable’ domain, each can play their part.

That’s it for this occasion, stay tuned for our next educational article. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us.